The Rebirth
by sleepyseven
Summary: Sequel to 'A New Kind of Evil' Bella is losing herself to the hunger and pain inside her. James and Edward set out to save her from herself. Language and Violence. On hiatus. Sorry
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Twilight.

This is the sequel to 'A New Kind of Evil'

Chapter 1

The tall forest trees towered above Bella, standing like quiet giants as she ran. The tears she so desperately wanted to shed would not come. Branches snagged at her hair and rocks crumpled beneath her feet as she ran; trying to lose herself in the darkness of the cold Canadian night.

With each step a new memory forced its way into her mind. All the touches, the sound of Jonah's voice, the things Victor had forced her to do. If it were possible to be sick she would have thrown up the contents of her stomach; which was excruciatingly empty at the moment. It had been hours since she'd last fed and now a dry ache was scratching in her throat. If she didn't feed soon it would take over, making her think of nothing but blood.

She almost wished for that, anything to keep her from thinking about what had happened to her. Even missing her parents couldn't take precedent over the horrible images in her mind at the moment.

It seemed like she'd traveled for hours, sprinting through the forest like a wild animal. Yet there was no fatigue, no pain- Only the will to push forward, to find the scent of her next victim.

A sinister smile spread over across Bella's pale lips. That was it; she knew what would make her happy. If she could make just one person feel her pain, make them scream in agony like she had, it would make things easier. All she needed was to pass off this anger, share it with another person. Then slowly drain every drop of blood in them until their heart beat no more. Then she'd be happy.

When she caught the scent she almost stopped in shock. It had taken her completely by surprise. The sweet, coppery smell of blood floating in the wind; it made her veins burn.

Without making a sound she followed it, moving in the shadows like a ghost. When she reached the camp ground it was like a buffet waiting for her.

There were so many humans here, so many chances to pass her pain and anger off to someone else. How could she choose?

Bella knew better than to take them all though; there'd be too many questions, too many chances for her to be caught. Not like she could be stopped anyway, but that wasn't what she wanted.

It wasn't just the victim she wanted to suffer. Her kill would send a ripple through a family, causing pain that would last for years. The more survivors there were, the more people there were to suffer.

She crept along the edge of a motor home, listening to the beating of hearts. They were rhythmic and calm, like a war drum. From as far as she could tell there were four people, two adults and two children.

This would be perfect. She'd take one and leave the rest to mourn, just like her own parents. Why should they have to suffer why the rest of the world moved on with their happy meaningless lives? What about all the families in mourning after Victor had taken their loved ones?

No, it wasn't fair at all. And Bella was there to make it right, like an angel of mercy for all those aching hearts. She would make others feel that pain too, it would be equal.

Bella stood in front of the motor home and boosted herself up on the chrome bumper. While she held herself up with the mirror she pulled her right hand back and formed a tight fist. This was for her own aching heart she told herself. Without even the slightest bit of effort she shattered the windshield with her punch and dropped back to the ground to wait.

A light switched on in the cabin. Bella could hear their hearts pounding and the blood racing in their veins. Soon enough it would be in her veins she thought greedily. Her mouth was practically watering with the thought.

"Just stay here, I'm going to go look." A man's voice drifted through the now broken window.

Two sets of small feet ran to the back of the motor home, probably to snuggle up with some over protective mother. Bella thought of her own mother and how she'd never get to feel the warmth of her embrace again.

The man opened the small door cautiously and swung a beam of light across the dirt clearing. He took a hesitant step down to the ground and continued searching for signs of danger. There would be none though. Bella was skilled killer, leaving to trace of herself.

Something in his heart was screaming at him to go, run, and protect his family. It wasn't logical though. Maybe his instincts told him that death was near, but his mind refused to listen.

When he came around the front of the tall auto his light landed on a thin, pale girl; crouching against the cold steal bumper.

She couldn't have been what broke the window could she?

Bella smiled up at the man. His blonde hair was thinning, showing a slight gleam from the moonlight on his forehead. His flannel night shirt flapped in the light breeze, sending his scent at Bella like a wave.

When he finally realized what he was looking at it was too late. His blue eyes went wide and his mouth opened in a silent scream. Bella sprung at him and had her mouth locked over his neck before he could hit the ground.

She drank heavily, enjoying the little squirts of blood that filled her mouth with each heart beat.

At some point this man had done something to deserve this she told herself. All men were evil; they only existed to hurt those weaker than themselves. For a second Bella felt whole again; the pain that had buried itself so deep into her heart was numb if only for that moment. As soon as the man's heart stopped the pain came back, eating away at her soul.

She wasn't even sure she had one anymore.

By the time his wife came to see what was taking the man so long Bella had already disappeared back into the trees.

Bella wasn't satisfied though; with her red eyes practically glowing in the dark she set out towards the city. She'd find another victim, another moment of peace. A part of her was screaming to stop, telling her what she had done was wrong. The thirst and the pain made it too difficult to hear though.

'More blood' that will make it stop hurting she promised herself.

_______________________________________________________________________________

The air came through the open window, bringing with it the sounds of the night. James leaned his head back against the seat and closed his eyes.

'Where are you Bella? What are you doing?' He wished he'd gone after her. Watching her run out into the forest and not stopping her had been the single most difficult thing he'd ever done.

He knew she was hurting, but being alone wouldn't help anything. All he wanted was to feel her in his arms and hear her voice. For so long he'd been alone, and then he'd found her. Their time together had been too short, he needed her.

"Where are we going?" His voice was quiet, almost completely lost in the wind. Edward heard him though; with their ears it was impossible to miss anything.

"Not sure, I'm just driving until we hit empty I guess." Edward shrugged and then pressed a button on the radio to search through the stations again.

"Could you just fucking pick something already?"

His constant channel surfing was starting to get on James' nerves. At that point he was pretty sure anything would get on his nerves.

"Whatever." Edward hit the power button a little too hard and left a gapping hole in the dashboard.

"Good job." James muttered and leaned his head back again. How did he get stuck with Edward Fucking Cullen for crying out loud? If he hadn't been sure it would make Bella upset he would have ditched him on the side of the road miles ago.

"Would you get off my case already? I'm just as worried about her as you are ok! She needed to be alone for awhile though…" Edward's eyebrows drew together in thought.

He'd seen what Victor and Jonah had done to her. The images burned into his heart like a branding iron.

It had been his fault; he had let revenge and anger drive him to do things he knew were wrong. How could he let that happen to her? He wished he could take it all back. Now he had eternity for the sounds of her cries to haunt him. Guilt wrapped around him like a dark cloak, drowning him in his memories.

Neither of the boys would say it out loud, but they needed her more than she needed them. She had been the calm reassurance Edward needed. ; Making him feel like he was good enough, like he could just be himself.

She'd been more to James though. Bella had been light that had brought him out of the darkness; showing him that there was a different choice in his life. She showed him that he could choose his own path and that there was someone who loved him no matter what.

Without her they were both lost.

"Did you hear that?" A noise had stirred James out of his thoughts. He leaned his head out the window slightly, trying to hear anything else.

"No, what did it sound like?" Edward slowed the car down a little, letting the road noise die.

"It sounded like breaking glass." James looked out into the trees, wondering what could have made such a loud shattering sound this late out in the forest.

Edward rolled his eyes.

"You're just hearing things. There's nothing out there." He pushed down on the accelerator; speeding off towards nothing.

"No, there are people out there. I can smell them."

James' eyes scanned the trees, but there was nothing out there that he could see.

"Speaking of humans… Um… maybe we should eat soon."

James glanced over at Edward and for the first time noticed the almost nervous edge in his voice. The way his hands gripped the steering wheel like he might rip it off at any moment. Edward was getting better at controlling the hunger, but he still couldn't go long between feedings.

"Yeah, you're right. At the next city we'll hunt."

Edward nodded in agreement and relaxed slightly. Just knowing that he could feed soon comforted him.

He hated that. , Feeling the relief knowing that soon he could kill. Taking a human life should not have been so appealing to him. How could James be so calm through all of this?

They drove in silence towards the city lights, neither of them wanting to say what came next out loud.

"Maybe we can find some homeless guys or something. Someone no one would miss."

Edward was reaching, trying to find some way to excuse what they were about to do.

"It's murder Eddie. No matter how much we try to pass it off as something else that's what it is. But we have to do. Don't feel so guilty."

Edward glared at the blond boy sitting next to him.

"Don't call me Eddie." He growled out.

"Over there." James pointed at a run down bar with its lights still on. It was late and all that would be left were the drunks.

They pulled into the parking lot and found a spot near the back of the building. ' Keeping to the shadows.

"So what are we going to do? Just walk in there and pick off a few of the customers? We should stick to the streets." Edwards's voice dripped with sarcasm and distain. There was no way he and James could stick together. They hated each other too much.

"Just wait here, I'm going to go and check it out." James got out of the car and slammed the door behind him.

He wouldn't be the least bit surprised if he came back out and Edward was gone. In fact he'd be slightly grateful. At least then he wouldn't be hurting Bella more by being the one to leave.

The inside of the bar was smoky; the only light came from an old hanging lamp over the pool table and flickering neon sign in the window. An old man behind the bar looked at him then went back to reading some tattered old magazine.

James looked over their options, not much. There was a group of men at a table in the corner laughing a little too loudly over a pool game that had just finished. Apparently someone had just lost a hundred bucks and they weren't too happy about it.

"I know you cheated asshole. Now give me the money before I knock what the rest of your nasty ass teeth." A large man with tattoos on his neck and greasy hair was yelling at a skinnier man with just ass many tattoos.

These were men James knew well, he'd grown up around them. There were four of them, all covered in various amounts of ink and wearing shirt proclaiming which kind of motorcycle they preferred.

James kept an eye on them while sitting at the bar.

"Whiskey and water." He called out to the bartender who hadn't even looked up from his magazine.

"Are you sure yer of age son?" The old man peaked over the wrinkled pages with a weary eye.

James held up a twenty dollar bill.

"I'm old enough to have my own money." He flashed a confident smile and tossed the bill onto the counter.

Without another word the old man slid the bill into his pocket instead of depositing it into the cash register and poured the drink.

With his glass in hand James walked over to the pool table and picked up a discarded pool cue. He drained the liquid in one gulp and set the dirty glass on the side of the table. He racked the balls nosily, drawing as much attention to himself as possible.

"Hey, check out junior of here. Thinks his king of the fucking table."

The corner of James' mouth lifted into a smile, 'bait taken' he thought.

He set the white ball down with perfect accuracy and sent it flying into the triangle of multi colored billiard balls. As planned, not one ball made it into a pocket.

"Shit." He shook his head in mock frustration and continued around the table. Taking at least two hits to get in any ball he aimed for.

"Common man. Here's your chance too win back some of that money you lost so your old lady don't break your balls when you get home."

There was a scrapping of chairs as the men stood and walked over to the table.

"You looking for a game junior?" The skinny man smiled at James like he knew all the answers to all the questions in the universe.

James suppressed a laugh when he thought about what the guys face would look like after he was done with him.

"Well, I'm not so good. And I only got eighty bucks. I'd be willing to bet twenty though."

With a shrug James pulled out a wade of twenties that held way more than eighty dollars.

All four men gave each other knowing sneers. They were all thinking that it didn't matter how the game ended, James wouldn't be leaving with a penny.

James re-racked the balls and took a coin out of his pocket.

"Uh uh kid. This is our table. I break." The skinny man yanked the cue out of James hand.

"Sorry, sorry." James held up his hands and laughed. This was like leading a blind man off a cliff.

The game went quickly. Skinny sank two solids then it was James' turn. He hit every stripped ball in with only four moves.

"Eight ball, side pocket." He eyed said pocket, then looked up at Skinny.

James looked the man dead in the eye while he sank the winning ball.

"Looks like I win." He smiled innocently.

"You mother fucking little punk. I ain't paying no cheater." Skinny took a step forward into James' personal space.

The unpleasant smell of old grease and body odor coming off the man over powered James' sensitive nose.

"Hey now, you bet fair and square. Maybe it was just beginners luck." He took a step back and held out his hand, waiting for the money Skinny owed him.

"Look kid. I know a set up when I see one. Now I think you should pay my friend for his troubles. We don't allow cheatin' here."

An overweight man a shiny bald head had stepped forward. So this was the ring leader James mused over his thoughts of draining all the blood out the man.

"Well how about we just call this a wash then. It's about time for me to head home anyway. You know, mom's probably waiting up and all."

As soon as James took a step towards the door the four men formed a wall in front of him.

"You ain't goin' anywhere 'till you pay up. Now hand over the fucking money." Skinny had spoken up again, apparently not happy about his buddies having to step in for him.

"How about… we take this outside?" James held up his hands again to gesture that he meant no harm.

Skinny let out a raspy laugh.

"You have got to be kidding me." He shook his head while his chuckles subsided. "Sure, let's go kid."

The group of men filed out the door with James in tow, the old bartender lowered his magazine and watched. James glanced back at him and winked.

Outside the air was much clearer and James took a deep breath trying to clear the stink out of his sinuses.

The men formed a half circle with Skinny in the center who was busy stretching his neck and cracking his knuckles.

"So this is going to be a fair fight right guys? I wouldn't want my friend to have to get involved."

They all turned to look at Edward who had gotten out of the car to see what James was up to.

"This little bitch?" Fat and bald pointed at Edward and let out a whoop of a laugh.

Edward stood rigid, trying to figure just what the hell was going on. With his button up white shirt and black slacks Edward hardly looked like someone these men would be worried about.

"Who did your hair buddy?" The smaller man who had yet to say anything had stepped forward and was looking up at Edward.

James had to turn his head to keep Edward from seeing his laugh, but it didn't work. Edward threw him a dirty look.

"What? Your hair is pretty stupid Eddie."

"I told you… not to call me Eddie."

Edward balled his hands into fists at his sides, ready to take out his anger on whoever came close.

"Uh oh boys, I think we're about to see a lovers quarrel." Skinny sneered while the rest of the men laughed.

"This was your plan?" Edward looked back at the four men, obviously not happy with what he was seeing.

"Well, you got a better idea?"

The two boys stood side to side, taking on a predatory stance.

In that second, with only the slight crouching of the two young men in front of them, the group of men realized that this was the end of their useless existences.

By the time Edward and James were done all that was left were a few pieces of torn shirts and a blood stain that the old bartender could never get to wash away.

He would later tell the police that a young man had come into the bar but for some reason he was unable to recall his face, a first in his long career as a barkeep.

The bodies of the four missing men were never recovered, but there was an alert out for two teenage boys traveling in a high end black sedan with dark tinted windows.

It didn't matter though. The car the police were looking for had been abandoned in the next city behind a run down apartment complex where it had been broken into and disassembled within two hours of being left.

James and Edward moved on, not knowing that their path was running an almost parallel line to the one thing they both wanted more than anything. Bella.

Please review =)


	2. Chapter 2

I do not own Twilight

Chapter 2

A soft thumping of sneaker on packed dirt came from the dark track behind the high school. It was four in the morning and Patrick West was running laps, like he did every morning before work.

His toned arms pumped in rhythm to his steps as he ran, taking in deep controlled breaths. The older he got the harder it was to keep this up, but he pushed through the physical pain; knowing in the end it would pay off.

He planned on leading a long healthy life. Patrick was careful to only eat organic food when possible, he didn't smoke or do drugs, and in fact… he only had one real vice; girl, teenage girls to be exact.

For some reason they appealed to his nature more than a mature woman. The way they giggled over the things he said, or how they flirted shamelessly, not understanding to full consequences of what they were saying; especially when they said it to a thirty year old man like him.

Patrick was pretty good looking. He kept his dark hair short and professional; during the day he was a drafter for a design firm; most the time he only worked on parking garages, a major need in well populated areas. It wasn't exciting but it paid well and left the nights open for whatever he might want to do; or who he might want to do.

What his face lacked in looks his body made up for. All the hours in the gym and running the track left him slim and lean. His muscles defined clearly under his sweat soaked t-shirt.

The night before had cost him some energy for the morning. He'd gone to a club with some buddies; not unusual for him, he just didn't like to do it on work nights.

He'd met a few girls who had gotten in with fake ideas and spent most of his cash buying them fruity drinks loaded with alcohol; panty droppers as his buddies like to call them. One girl in particular had caught his eye.

She was taller than the other girls but skinny with a perky little butt. While the other girls wouldn't shut up she had stayed towards the back, shyly sipping a drink. It only took three drinks to get her to open up and when she did Patrick was ready and receptive.

He acted like he believed her when she said she was twenty one, and he nodded and smiled when she talked about college. As if she'd ever even stepped on a campus he thought while she talked.

By the time the club was closing she could barely remember her own last name and had accepted his offer to take her home without a second thought. While driving out of the parking lot he suggested stopping by his own place for awhile, it wasn't that far away after all.

The girl thought about it for a minute, not noticing they were already headed in that direction. In her mind she saw a pretty cute guy with a hot body and a nice car. If she played things right he might take her out again. Her friends would think she was so cool if she dated an older guy with some money.

In the end she had said yes to coming over; but to Patrick that meant yes to sex.

It had been awkward at first, she wasn't experienced and he had to show her how to do some things, but once she finally passed out he had taken what he wanted without care. While she lay sleeping he pounded into her little body so hard that the next day she would feel like someone drove a truck between her legs.

He had to practically carry her out to his car, in hurry to get her out of there before his neighbors saw anything. Patrick pulled up to the curb in front of her house and noted a minivan and a sedan in the driveway; a tricycle sitting on the porch. He wondered how old she really was.

"So maybe we can hang out again some time Peter?" The girl smiled over at him, still in a drunken daze.

"Uh, yeah. Give me a call." Patrick speed off before she could realize he'd never given her his number.

Sweat beaded down his forehead and his muscles protested against each step, but he needed this. He thought of it as a cleansing of all the alcohol from the night before. To him it had been a good night. Patrick wasn't really a bad guy in his own mine; he just had a few snags in his moral thread.

He knew someday he'd have to give up going out and seducing young girls into his bed, and that day would probably be sooner than later. Then he'd meet someone closer to his own age and settle down, forgetting about all those dark nights in his past.

All these things where running through his mind, enough so that he didn't notice the young girl watching him from beneath the bleachers.

She had dark hair hanging down passed her shoulders and pale skin. Her eyes were blood red and full of hunger.

Bella stepped out onto the grass next to the track, waiting for the next time her prey would come around to her side of the small field. She'd been watching him run for fifteen minutes, enjoying the scent that was coming off his body each time he passed her. She couldn't contain her hunger anymore though.

It was just a coincidence that she had chosen a man who enjoyed taking the innocence from young girls. She had just happened to be hiding in the trees behind the school when she saw his car pull into the parking lot.

Bella came to investigate and was pleased to see a healthy male, full of delicious blood.

As he came around the bend he noticed Bella watching him and slowed to a stop, bending to put his hands on his knees.

"Can I help you something?"

He noticed that Bella was wearing a tiny black dress, something that a normal girl wouldn't be wearing on a chilly northwestern morning. It was torn in some places and had smears of dirt others.

Patrick stood and examined her closer. Her face was deathly pale and her lips parted in a dangerous smile. In any other setting he would have mistaken it for an invitation to flirt, but here it gave him the sense that he should be running as fast he could in the opposite direction.

"Are you alright…" his voice trailed off when he finally looked into her eyes.

They were blood red with tiny black pupils staring out from the center. He'd never seen anything like it in his life.

"I'm perfect. Thanks for asking." Bella put a hand on his arm and stepped closer to him, taking a deep breath in.

Patrick tried to step back but her hold on his arm was like steel, keeping him from moving. Adrenaline pumped through his veins.

"Don't be scared. It will only hurt for a little while."

Bella put her other hand on the back of his neck and pulled him down to her. Patrick was surprised by her unimaginable strength; no matter how he struggled there was no escaping.

He screamed when her teeth sunk into the flesh on his neck. With every strain he made to pull away more blood poured out of the wound and into Bella's waiting lips.

Once she had finished she dropped the body onto the red clay track and fished his car keys out of his pocket.

"I need a shower after that." She smelled her arms where she'd touched him. His sweat clung to her skin.

Hours after she'd gone to his house to shower and hide out for awhile two students cutting across the field to class found his body. The way his skin hung slack on his bones and his eyes stared up at the morning sky with the look of complete horror would follow the both of them for the rest of their lives.

The pain Bella wanted to spread was taking root in them, people she'd never counted on hurting. If she had known it would have made her smile. She loved the way she felt when someone else felt pain because of her. For in that moment she was free.

When the cops came to his house later that day a reporter was standing just off the edge of the property and called his editor when he heard one of the rookies saying that they'd found semen on the bed sheets and a tattered black dress in the bathroom. It looked like a woman had just left.

__________________________________________________________________________________

James leaned over the front of the blue truck they had stolen, one hand braced on the hood while he heaved the contents of his stomach into the dead bushes on the side of the highway.

"What the hell are you doing?" Edward was leaning against the truck next to him.

James had told him to take a hike down the center lane of the highway but he decided he would rather watch his blond companion suffer through the dry heaves that had taken hold of him minutes before.

An amber colored liquid shot out of James lips and nose, finally relieving him of the drink he'd had the night before in the bar. Edward sniffed the air like he'd just smelled something foul.

"Is that alcohol?"

"Yes jackass, now shut up and leave me alone."

"God you're stupid. Why did you drink that?"

James spit out the rest of the liquid and wiped his mouth with the back of his hands, feeling infinitely better the bid rid of the stuff.

"I was trying to look human! I didn't want those guys to get suspicious."

"You didn't think they would figure it out when you drank their blood?"

James looked at Edward like he was the dumbest person on the planet.

"You're such a fucking moron." He smacked Edward on the back of the head as he walked around him to the driver's seat.

"I'm driving." Edward yelled, but it was too late; James was already in the truck and starting to pull away.

Edward had to scramble to get into the cab and closed the door too hard, making it sink into the body of the truck like they'd been hit by another car.

"What the hell Eddie! Can't you control that?" It seemed like Edward was always breaking something lately and it was driving James nuts.

"It's your fault for pulling out before I was in the truck!"

The boys sat fuming while they drove towards a new city. It was strange not having a destination but always having to be on the move. If they stayed anywhere too long suspicions would arise. They needed to dump the truck anyway.

"Why don't we just skip a car this time? We move faster without one." Edward was watching the trash on the side of the road as he spoke. He was still wrestling with his own ingrained beliefs about right and wrong; and breaking the law by stealing cars was definitely wrong.

"I like having a car. Get over it." James wasn't going to admit that it made him feel more human to drive. He'd always loved cars. A well tuned engine and sleek metal could keep him content for a very long time. Giving up cars was like letting go of another piece of who he used to be when his heart still beat.

A water tower up a head proclaimed 'Welcome to Hubbard', the town around it was clean and quiet.

"We can't stop here man. This place is too nice; we'll be noticed by someone."

Edward watched a few kids running down the street with a baseball bat, probably heading home for dinner.

He thought about his own mother and family and how much he missed them.

"I wonder what Emmett and Alice are doing." He had leaned his head against the glass and was expecting his breath to make a small patch of fog on the window. When nothing happened he clenched his jaw in frustration.

"Calm down Edward. I'm sure their fine." James wouldn't look at him; he hated seeing Edward look so depressed. It made him depressed.

Edward didn't want them to be fine though, he wanted them to miss him and be as sad about him being gone as he felt. He knew he shouldn't want his family to be unhappy; it just hurt to think they could move on so easily without him.

"You wouldn't understand... you didn't have a family to lose. Didn't you kill your own dad anyway?"

Edward wanted to take back to words the second he said them. He hadn't meant to hurt James; he was just angry.

James didn't say anything for a long time, he just watched out the windshield as the city around them prepared for the evening.

"You're right. I didn't have a family. I'm just a loser no one cares about."

The sudden raw emotion Edward felt coming off the boy shocked him. He's always imagined James as a tough empty shell, not caring about anyone or anything.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean that-"

"No, it's ok. You're family loved you and I'm sure they all miss you a lot. My dad didn't give a shit about me and I did kill him. He deserved it though."

They reached the edge of the town and James parked on a side street next to an old junk yard. In the pale light coming off the street lamp ahead of them Edward could see the pain in James' red eyes.

"It's not true you know." He offered quietly.

"What?" James was getting tired of the conversation and wanted to just drop the subject already.

"Bella cares about you."

Just saying her name made both boys suffer; they missed her, they were worried about her… Neither of them wanted to think about how much they needed her.

"I wonder where she is."

James' voice was distant and Edward knew he was talking to himself.

"How long do you think we should wait before we look for her?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't even know where to start. She could be anywhere by now."

Edward felt like a little boy who'd lost his puppy. He still thought of Bella as the fragile, sensitive little girl he'd dated back in forks. She was all alone out in the big world with no one to look after her and it scared him. If he only knew exactly how much Bella didn't need someone to look out for her…

"It just doesn't feel right. I feel like I let her down. After all she did for us; we should be there for her."

James punched the dashboard turning into a twisted mess of plastic and wires. He hated how vulnerable he felt. And as much as he hated Edward seeing his weak spot, he had to talk to someone or he would explode.

"Hey, now who's the one breaking stuff?"

Edward raised his eyebrows in a way childish way. It was almost the same as sticking out his tongue, but he was pretty sure if he did that James would try to rip it off.

"Whatever man. Let's just go. There are larger cities not too far from here. I'm sure we can hunt there."

James got out of the truck and slipped into the shadows, where he belonged he thought bitterly. Edward followed him, trying to think of a way to comfort James without having to be too open.

They were both still struggling with their friendship. As much as they couldn't stand each other, the thought of being alone was worse. Neither James nor Edward would ever admit that though. It was much easier to act like they were doing it for Bella.

Edward caught up to James and put a light hand on his shoulder.

"We'll find her. Don't worry. We have eternity right?"

While it was meant to reassure James, it just made him feel worse. If he couldn't find her soon, that only meant she would have eternity to be alone in her pain.

________________________________________________________________________________

Detective Noelle Peterson accepted the case file from the desk sergeant with a scowl.

"Merry Christmas Detective." He winked at her before walking away.

It took every ounce of control she had to keep from hurling the stapler on her desk at the back of his head.

The merry Christmas joke had been cute the first time she'd heard it, but a year later and all it did was add to the likely hood of her having a heart attack before the age of thirty.

She rubbed her temples lightly before opening the file; it was probably something stupid and pointless. That's all they ever gave her.

In a station full of pompous men who think they knew everything they thought of Noelle as a novelty item; cute to look at but not worth much.

"DOA, thirty year old male, bruising, neck wound… completely drained of blood."

She stopped mumbling to herself and reread the last part. No blood?

Noelle flipped over to the crime scene photos. There was the man, Patrick West, lying on the ground. His eyes were looking to the heavens in sheer terror; it was odd how much emotion was still left in the corpse. Usually they just looked, blank. The last thing this man had felt was writing clearly on his face.

She tore her eyes away from his expression and studied thee area around him. There were scuffle marks in the red dirt but nothing else. No blood.

If someone is drained of all blood it has to go somewhere, and in that sort of setting it usually made a mess. The wound on his neck was a gapping hole of flesh and torn muscle. Not a neat little needle to feed blood into a container. Besides, it wasn't an easy task to remove all the blood from a body without simple chopping off the head.

Noelle closed the folder and pulled on her black sports coat. This was something she had to see for herself.

As she stepped out into the cold night air she thought about stopping for food before heading to the coroner's office. She hated the way that place smelled and it always ruined her appetite.

While getting into her old Honda something across the street caught her eye. At first she'd sworn there were men running through the shadows; a blond man and a slightly taller man with coppery hair. It had only caught her eye because of how stupid his hair cut was.

Noelle blinked a few times trying to force her eyes into adjusting to the dim light but by then there was nothing there. She shook her head before pulling out of the parking lot, noticing a dark blue truck parked next to the old junk yard. The passenger side was dented in like it had been in a side impact accident.

After thinking about it for a moment she called into the station to have an officer check it out. She wasn't exactly sure why she did it, but in her experience following your gut was usually a good thing.


End file.
